Roulette Basics for Beginners

In this article, you will learn the basics of roulette. Know the rules, bets, odds and house edge. Although Roulette is more popular in Europe, it is still one of the top casino games in America.

In Roulette, the first thing you will need to know is the roulette chips. Compared to other casino games, regular casino chips are not used in the game of Roulette. When players place their money on the layout and request for chips, they will be given special roulette chips by the dealer. Each player is given different color of chips to ensure whose chips belong to whom. Do not be surprised when couples or friends playing together are also given different color of chips. This is because the house doesn’t want to handle any argument as to whose chips belong to whose.

Players will also be asked to designate the value of their chips. For example, one player might want to designate each of his chips to be worth $1 while another player will want to make his chips worth $5 each. When you leave the table, the dealer exchanges the special roulette chips you were given for regular chips that can be used to bet in other casino games. So, do remember to cash in all of your chips with the dealer at the end of your roulette session.

The Roulette Wheel

Next comes the roulette wheel which contains numbered slots and determines the fate or the winners and losers. There is a slight difference in the European wheel and American wheel. The American roulette wheel contains 38 numbered slots – the numbers 0, 00 and 1 to 36, while the European wheel only has 37 slots – 0 to 36.

The numbers on a standard Roulette wheel are not arranged in sequence. They are arranged in a way where red and black alternate between each other and also opposite each other. The numbers opposite each other is also the corresponding higher or lower number. For example, opposite a red number 1 is a corresponding black number 2.

How to Play

Roulette is usually played on an elongated table where the Roulette wheel will be on one end, with the betting layout for all the bets on the other. The aim in Roulette is to win money based on picking the numbered slot where the ball will land on.

Players begin their games by placing their bets on the table. Then, the croupier, which is the dealer, spins the wheel and rolls a small metal ball in the opposite direction. The ball will bounce around the inside of the wheel and finally land on one of the numbers indicating the winner. On average, there is about 90 games in an hour.

The great thing about playing Roulette online or at land-based casino venues is that even with all the different bets you can make, it is a beginner friendly game, and it’s possible to have a chance of winning money even if you don’t have an in-depth understanding about the game.

Roulette Bets

There are two main types of roulette bets you can make. The two groups are “inside bets” and “outside bets”, since this is the location on the roulette table where you will place both respective bets.

All the bets made on the numbers on the inside of the table are inside bets. This is the section of the betting grid where you can bet on individual numbers. On the other hand, outside bets refer to those placed in the betting section on the outside of the section of the roulette table. These bets include even money bets and allow you to bet on groups of numbers, such as red/black, odds/evens, high/low, etc.

Most bets have the same house edge, so the choice of bet is a matter of preference. Do you prefer frequent small wins or the occasional big payday?

Roulette Odds and House Advantage

For every number that the player wins, they will be receiving 35 to every 1 chip they have bet which means they’ll be collecting 36 chips in total. The house edge is set at 5.26% which means that players will receive odd of 35 to 1 rather than the true odds of 36 to 1 or 37 to 1.

The house edge is the same for all of the roulette bets (except one), but the odds of winning depend entirely on the type of bets you make. Even money bets like red/black are the best option for beginners, as they provide the best chances of winning (47.37% in American Roulette). While the odds on winning on straight-up bets is 2.63%. You won’t win often on straight bets, but when you do win it’s a huge payday.